Justice and Detention Centre, Leoben, Austria

Justice and Detention Centre

Architect Josef Hohensinn did not find it all that far-fetched to take home comfort into consideration in his penitentiary design for the new Justice and Detention Centre in Leoben. Façades, layout of spaces, art concept - everything meets the highest Austrian standards. Nevertheless, the building would not deserve further mention if it were not for the underlying structure that delegations from all over the EU come to visit: Austria's show-piece prison. Prisoners in groups up to thirteen are accommodated in a wing of their own and can move freely among the cells and communal spaces. The architect suggested the additional possibility of stepping out for fresh air, so it was agreed that each communal section would have a kind of loggia - surrounded by bars, of course, but the inmates are outdoors. The prisoners also have three courtyards at their disposal, with concrete seating walls meandering through the space, so it would no longer be possible to circle around in a single file.